Marvel’s What If…? brand is now a mainstream hit (thanks to the Marvel Cinematic Universe animated series) and now Marvel is rolling out an alternate-universe concept that is sure to make fans all sit up and take notice: What If Miles Morales became the new Captain America? Marvel Comics has released the preview for What If… Miles Morales Became Captain America, and you can check out the official cover art/concept of Miles Morales Captain America, below!
Miles Morales has become a major breakout success for Marvel – arguably the biggest success story the comic publisher has had launching a new character in the 21st century. When Miles first appeared on the scene in 2011 (the creation of acclaimed comic creators Brian Michael Bendis and Sara Pichelli) he was largely criticized as a gimmick – a minority version of the Spider-Man character (half-black, half-Latino) meant to appease fans in the Obama-era.
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However, what was first seen as “PC pandering” by Marvel quickly evolved into a bigger opportunity, as Miles struck a chord with readers. Marvel’s “Ultimate” universe killed off its version of Peter Parker and made Miles the Spider-Man of that reality; when Marvel eventually destroyed its multiverse and folded it all back into one, singular, reality, Miles Morales literally and figuratively made the cut, and survived that “Secret Wars” clean-up of the mid-2010s to became a staple of the full-fledged “official” canon of the Marvel 616 Universe. As the 2010s ended, Miles Morales catapulted from achieving mainstream comic book fame to achieving pop-culture mainstream fame: his animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is an Oscar-winner success that’s often ranked as THE best Spider-Man movie of all time; his Spider-Man: Miles Morales video game is also a best-selling hit that helped launch the PS5 generation of consoles. A What If? series focused on the character is very timely.
Thanks to the MCU, Captain America is also now one of the most famous heroes in pop-culture – whether it’s Chris Evans’ Steve Rogers, or the newly-shielded Anthony Mackie, as Falcon / Captain America II. Combining the Captain America and Miles Morales concepts is an easy win for Marvel at this juncture. Check out the preview for What If?: Miles Morales #1:
FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD… CAPTAIN AMERICA! What if…Miles Morales had never been bitten by a genetically enhanced spider and became Spider-Man? What if instead…the U.S. government recruited, trained, and granted him incredible powers with the Super-Soldier Serum? What makes Miles a hero no matter the circumstances, no matter the reality?! And are there OTHER super heroes the many Miles of the multiverse might have become instead of Spidey?!
What If… Miles Morales #1
Written by: Cody Ziglar
Art by: Paco Medina
Colors by: Chris Sotomayor
Inks by: Victor Olazaba, Sean Parsons, Walden Wong
Letters by: Cory Petit
Cover by: Sara Pichelli & Alejandro Sanchez
Page Count: 36 Pages
Release Date: March 2, 2022
